Before Hemsworth, the record for the biggest male funnel-web spider belonged to a 3.1-inch (7.9 cm) arachnid called Hercules. "We're used to having pretty big funnel-web spiders donated to the ...

The spider has since been taken in by enthusiast Jack Casson from Hartlepool, whose girlfriend named her Bessie.

The arachnid in question is a Macrothele calpeiana, or Spanish funnel-web spider, and gave folks quite a fright when they saw ...

A 1989 description of the species from the British Arachnological Society called it ‘Europe’s largest spider’, and also being ...